Internal-combustion-engine starrer



W. R. FISHER.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE STARTER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY s. 19H.

1 ,32 1, 1 99. Patented Nov. 11, 1919.

3 SHEETSSHEET I.

. V R Qwucwl'oz W. R. FISHER.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE STARTER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 5. 1917.

1 ,32 1, 1 99, Patented N (W. 11, 1919.

I 3 SHEETSSHEET 2.

an uc'nfoz W. R. FISHER.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE STARTER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 5. 1917.

1 32 1 1 99 Patented Nov. 11, 1919.

3 SHEETSSHEET 3- 7 sion of a starter embodying these character WILLIAM ROBERT FISHER, or BAR'TILEsVI'LI-E, OKLAHOMA.

. mTERn'AL-coMRUsTIon-RnemE sTART'ER.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Nov. 11, 1919.

Application 1116a my 5, 1917. Serial No. 166,659.

To all ivhom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM ROBERT FISHER, a citizen of the United States, and

a resident of Bartlesville, in the county of Washington and State of Oklahoma, have invented a certain new and useful Imrovement in Internal-Combustion-Engine tarters, of which the following is a specification. Y

The present invention relates to' starters for internal combustion engines, and more particularly to a starter of the mechanical t e.

An object is to provide a mechanical starter embodying spring-motor features ada ted to turn over or crank the internal com ustion engine, and which may be actuated by releasing an escapement nie?hanism requiring but slight pressure of the hand or foot. The starter is adapted to be energized or rewound by the internal combustion engine after the latter has been started, the invention providing an improved automati means for connecting and disconnecting the engine to the spring-winding mechamsmv The invention further aims at the proviistics, and which may be economically constructed from relatively few parts which may be easil assembled, and which occupy but relative y small space, the starter of this invention being adapted to be secured against the side of an internal combustion engine and be connected to the crank shaft thereof. I

A still further object of the present in vention is to provide a starter construction wherein stock springs may be employed, and which by slight changes in the lengths of several of its parts may accommodate any number of the springs to' adapt the starter to internal combustion engines of varlous slzes. I

The above, and varioiis other objects and 1 advantages of this invention will be in part described, and in part understood, from the following detailed'description of the-present preferred embodiment, the same being illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is an end elevation of a starter constructed according to the present invention, showing the drive chains connected thereto.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same, parts mem being in section to-disclose certain of the interior mechanism. I

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal vertical section taken through the same. 1 v

Fig. 4 is an opposite end'elevation of the starter, clutch mechanisms.

disclosing the -es'capement and F1 51s a transverse section taken sube stantially on the line 55 of Fig. 2, disclosing the rewinding mechanism, the

dotted lines showing the same. engaged when in position for rewinding the spring. F1%. 6 1s a top edge view of the clutch eremploye Y F 1g. 7 is an outer face view of the escapement Wheel taken substantially on the line 77 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 8 .is a transverse through, the rewinding mechanism substantially on the line 8-8 of Fig. 2. y

Fig. is a detail fragmentary view of the drum ratchet and the pawl for controlling the turning of the same.

Referring to these drawings, wherein like parts are designated by similar numerals of reference throughout the several views, the

section taken frame of the device comprises a base 10 pro- 1 vided at opposite ends with posts 11 and 12 gether by machine screws or the like to admit of theeasy assemblage and disassociation of the parts of the starter;

Extending longitudinally \through the frame is a drive shaft 14 which projects at its opposite ends beyond the posts 11 and 12 of the frame. One end of the shaft, which may be designated as the forward end thereof, is provided with a drive sprocket15 over which engages a drive chain 16, the latter being connected in any suitable manner to the internal combustion engine or other device adapted to be driven by the device of this invention. The forward end of the drive shaft 14 is journaledin the upright or post 12, and a secondary or tubular shaft 17, which extends substantially throughout the entire length of the shaft 14:,- has its rear end journaled in the post 11. The shaft 14: is supported at its rear end in the secondary shaft 17, and is adapted to turn freely in the secondary shaft. A collar 18 is keyed upon the rear end of the drive shaft 14 and is adapted to move longitudinally thereon,-and provided at its inner end with a ratchet disl;

19 having teeth upon its inner surface Whichadvanced towardthe escapement wheel 20..

The escapeinent wheel is also provided with a pair of outstanding stop pins 22 arranged at diametrically opposed points adjacent to themarginal edge of the wheel 20. Pivotally mounted upon a suitable projection formed on the adjacent post 11, is an escapement lever 23, the upstanding spacedapart fingers 24 and 25 therepf lying "in the path of movement of the pins 22. The escapement lever 23 is pivoted or fulcrumed intermediate the fingers 24 and 25, and it is apparent that upon the reciprocation of the lever 23, the finger 24 is moved out of the path of the pin 22, when .the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 4, and the finger 25 is raised into the path of the next succeeding pin 22 when the latter is brought into its new position. a

The escapement lever 23 is provided with an elongation or projection 26 which extends beyond the finger 25, and which is provided with a laterally extending pin 27 adapted for engagement-in a slot 28 formed longitudinally'in the lower end of a pull rod 29. The pull rod 29 is slidably mounted in a lug 30 projecting from one. side ofthe frame, and is connected to any suitable operating device by means of which the rod 29 may be drawn upwardly to release the mechanism. A clutch lever 31 is formed at its upper end with spaced-apart ears 32 pivotally held by a pin 33 to a lug 34 which projects rearwardly from the frame, and one ear 32 is provided with a forwardly projectingarm 35 bifurcated at its extremity and engaging about the pull rod 29. The

arm 35 engages the pull rod 29 at a point spaced downwardly from the lug 30, and a relatively weak spring 36 is mounted on the rod 29 and bears against the arm 35 and holds the lower end of the clutch lever 31 inoperative. A second relatively strong spring 37 is mounted on the pull rod 29 and engages at one end against the under side of the arm 35 and at its opposite end against a pin 38 which is carried upon the pull rod. I

The spring 37 urges the pull rod 29 downwardly, at which time the upper spring 36 is free to act upon the arm 35 for holding the clutch lever inoperative.-

The lower end of the clutchv lever 31 is provided with fork arms 39 adapted to engage in an annular groove 40 formed in the periphery of the collar 18. The clutch lever 31 is adaptedlto shift the sleeve 18 toward and from the escapement wheel 20,

and to interlock the teeth of the clutch disk 19 with the projection 21 of the escapement wheel.

A relatively large drum 41 is rotatably mounted upon the secondary shaft 17, and is adapted to house one or more springs 42 which surround the secondary shaft. In the present instance, a. pair of springs 42 is disclosed, the same having their outer ends secured to the drum 41' by rivets 43 or the like, and having their inner ends secured to the secondary shaft 17 by rivets 44 or the like.

The drum 41 is free to turn in the frame in one-direction, and is held from rotation in an opposite direction by the provision of a ratchet wheel or rim 45 which is preferably secured against the rear end of the drum 41, and which has the teeth thereof extending in an anti-clockwise direction. A springpressed pawl 46 is mounted in the lower part of the frame and engages the teeth of the ratchet 45 for holding the latter and the drum 41 from turning in the opposite direction.

The rewinding mechanism is arranged upon the forward end of the device, and comprises a spool or collar 47 fixed upon the drive shaft 14 at the inner side of the post 12. The collar 47 is provided, between the fiangesthereof, with a centrifugal arm 48 pivotally mounted upon the flanges of the projection of a locking dog 50. The locking dog 50 comprises the lower forked portion of a plate 51 which is pivotally mounted at its closed end upon a pin 52 projecting from the forward end of the drum 41. The upper fork arm 53 of the plate 51 is placed considerably above the locking dog 50 and is provided at its inner side with an inwardly projectin pin 54 lying in 'the path of a cam 55, the 10 e of which is adapted to engage the pin 54 for moving the plate 51 outwardl'y from the axis of rotation. The cam 55 is carried upon an intermittent gear 56 of the star-wheel type provided with relatively .deep radiating slots at the points thereof and having concaved dwells between the points. The gear Wheel 56, and the cam 55, are mounted for rotation upon a pin 57 projecting from the adjacent end of the drum 41, the pin 57 extending into the slot formed in the plate 51 and receives thereagainst a leaf spring 58 which is secured against the inner edge of the dog 50 and adapted to urge the plate 51 downwardly toward the collar 47.

The secondary shaft 17 is provided with I surface throughout practically its entire cirj cumference, and has in one side a concav1tyor recess 60 adapted to receive the points of the star wheel, one at a time. A pin 61 1s carried by the driving gear 59 directly opposite the concavity 60 and is s aced radially beyond the circumference o the driving gear for engagement in the radial slotslof the star wheel, one at a time to intermittently rotate the same. The lobe of the cam 55 is arranged in position opposite one of the an outwardly extended position.

In operation, when the starter is connected to an internal combustion engine or the like, and it is desired to start the. same,

it is onl necessary to draw upon the pull rod 29, t e spring 37'first rocking the clutch lever 31 and moving the sleeve 18 inwardly toward the escapement wheel 20. The slot '28 in the pull rod '29 allows the escapement further moved, the spring 37 is compressed under greater tension to overcome the tenlever 23 to remain at rest during this initial movement of the pull rod. As the latter 1s sion of the spring 36, and the lever 23 is Y ceeding in.

rocked to move the finger 24 thereofout of the. path of the adjacent pin 22, the finger 25 being raisedinto the path of the next suc- The one or more springs 42 employe are now free to turn the secondary shaft 17 with the escapement wheel 20 thereon until the second pin 22 strikes the finger 25. The clutch member 18 interlocks. the

two shafts so that the main shaft 14 is ro As the secondary shaft 17 is turned, the

intermittent driving gear 59 is given substantially a half turn, and if the engine fails to start on the first or initial turning of the starter, the operation may be repeated by again drawing on the pull rod 29. This further movement of the secondary shaft 17 carries the driving gear 59 through its complete revolution to engage in the adjacent slot of the star wheel 56 and advance the same one point. In the present instance, the star wheel 56 is disclosed as having six points and radial slots so that it requires twelve consecutive movements of the escapement mechanism and impulses of the starter to rotate the star wheel 56 one complete revolution. When the escapement lever 23 supportsone of the pins 22 by the finger 25-, the

return of the pull rod 29 to its normal posithe position shown in Fig. 5, the cam 55 is carried therewith and the lobe. of the cam releases the pin 54 so that the plate 51 is free for movement inwardl toward the collar 47. The spring '58 yie din ly holds the dog 50 in a position advanc toward the collar 47 and to be engaged by the centrifu gal arm 48 when the latter is swungaround on the shaft 14 at the required speed to overcome the spring 49. The shaft 14 is driven at this high rate of speed when the engine is started so that thearm 48 interlocks with the dog 50 and draws the plate 51 and the \drum 41 around in the direction in which the shaft 14 is turning for rewinding the one or more springs 42. When the springs are rewound, the lobe of the cam 55 strikes the pin 54 and-raises'the same sufficiently to lift the dog 50 out of engagement-with the centrifugal arm 48.- This action 'releases the drum 41 and the latter is held from retrograde movement bythe pawl 46 which engages the ratchet teeth 45 carried by the drum. -The dotted'lines in Fig. 5 disclose when the springs42 are fully unwound to.

prevent damage to the same.

It-is evident that the starter may have a number .of impulses equal to the number of points or slots in the star wheel 56 should but one pin 22 be employed. By the provision of the two pins 22 as shown in Fig. 4, the drive shaft 14 is given a half turn at each impulse of the starter and consequently twelve impulses may be had by the pro- .vision of' a six point star wheel.

Various changes and modifications may be made in the details of construction of the above-specifically described starter without departing from the spirit of the invention, and being restricted only by the scope of the following claims.

I claim 1. In an internal combustion engine starter, the combination of a driving shaft adapted for' connection with an engine, a secondary shaft freely rotatable on the driving shaft, a clutch for interlockin said shafts, a drum rotatably mounted on t e secondary shaft, a spring arranged between the drum and said secondary shaft for turning. the latter, means for holding the drum from rotation in one direction, escapement mechanism for the secondary shaft, operating means for interlocking the shafts and releasing the secondary shaft to start the engine, a movable member carried by the drum, means between the drum and the secondary shaft for advancing said member toward the first shaft upon the unwinding of the spring, and centrifugally operated &

means carried by the first shaft for interlocking engagement with said lever upon the driving of the first. shaft by the engine.

2. In an internal combustion engine starter, the combination of a driving shaft adapted for connection With the engine, a spring motor, a clutch between the spring motor and the driving shaft, releasing means for the spring, an operating rod connected to the releasing means and to the clutch for actuating the same to turn said driving shaft and start the engine, an interlocking member carried upon the spring motor and adapted to be moved toward said driving shaft upon the unwinding of the spring of the motor, and a centrifugal arm carried upon the driving shaft and adapted to move radially therefrom when driven by the engine to interlock with said member and rewind. the spring motor.

3. In an internal combustion engine starter, the combination of a driving shaft, a secondary shaft rotatable upon the driving shaft, a drum rotatable on the secondary shaft, a sprin carried by the drum engaging the secondary shaft to turn the same, a clutch adapted to interlock said shafts, an escapement mechanism adapted to normally retain the secondary shaft inoperative, a locking dog pivotally mounted on the drum, intermittent gears carried by the drum and the second shaft for moving said locking dog toward and from the first shaft, and a centrifugally operated member carried by the first shaft adapted for interlocking engagement with the dog to connect the drum to the first shaft for rotating the drum.

4. In an internal combustion engine starter, the combination of a drivin-g shaft, a secondary shaft on the driving shaft, a

drum freely rotatable .on the secondary shaft, a spring arranged between the drum and the secondary shaft for operating the latter, a clutch for interlocking the shafts, an escapement mechanism connected to the secondary shaft for controlling the movement of the same, means for releasing the secondary shaft and interlocking the clutch to rotate said drivin shaft, a connection between the driving giaft and internal combustion engine, said driving shaft being adapted to be turned by said engine when started, a locking dog pivotally mounted upon the end of the drum, an intermittent gear mounted on the drum and provided with a cam, a pin projecting from said looking dog for engagement With the cam, a second intermittent gear carried upon the secondary shaft for actuating said first gear, the second gear being adapted to be turned upon the unwinding of the spring to actuate the first gear and the cam and release said locking dog, a spring for said looking dog urging the latter toward the first shaft, and a spring-pressed arm carried upon the first shaft adapted for radial movement upon the driving of the first shaft to interlock the arm With said dog and rotate said drum.

WILLIAM ROBERT FISHF 

